By Emily Resnevic and Peter Shanley
Developers have filed a project notification form (PNF) with the Boston Redevelopment Authority (BRA) to renovate and expand the former Goddard House property at 201 S. Huntington Ave. into a 160,000-square-foot development that would have more than 150 residential units.
The developers, Eden Properties and Samuels & Associates, had filed their letter of intent earlier this year.
The BRA will hold a community meeting for the project on Nov. 23, as part of the Article 80 review. The comment period for the project ends Dec. 7.
The project consists of the rehabilitation and expansion of the existing, and currently vacant, 1926 Goddard House building. The preservation of the Goddard House building is defined as an “exceptional public benefit,” according to the S. Huntington Avenue corridor study conducted by the BRA in 2013.
The BRA is currently using that corridor study to potentially re-zone that area. The developers are banking on that happening, stating in the PNF that the project is consistent with the zoning proposed by the S. Huntington Avenue corridor study. If that re-zoning does not happen, the project will need several variances to be approved by the City’s Zoning Board of Appeals.
The project will also need approval and permits from several agencies and departments, including for new construction within the Greenbelt Protection Overlay District.
The renovation and expansion of the Goddard House would lead to 110 units, while the project also includes the construction of a free-standing building with 57 units to create a total of 167 residential units.
When facing the Goddard House property from S. Huntington Avenue, the new building would be built on the left side. One addition would be built behind the current Goddard House building, while the other addition would be built to the front right.
Additions to the Goddard House would be four stories tall, while the new building height would vary from four to six stories. A shadow analysis of the additions shows that shadow impacts to the area would be minor, according to the PNF.
The Goddard House renovation would have a mix of studios and one-bedroom, two-bedroom and three-bedroom units. The new building would have studios and one-bedroom and two-bedroom units.
“The existing Goddard House has a large brick facade with uniform window patterns and wall portions of limestone panels. The copper cornice has elaborate detailing and the sloped roof with dormers has slate shingles. The design intent of two new additions to Goddard House is to compliment and contrast the existing building by using more glazing in their facades in a simple pattern, and cladding the envelope with a copper colored exterior metal. For the new building, the design intent is to use a combination of materials, including the metal cladding similar to the Goddard additions, terracotta panels and fiber cement siding,” states the PNF.
The development would include covered and secure bike storage for 170 bicycles and 83 parking spaces. The PNF cites statistics about Boston renters’ low rates of car ownership to justify the disproportionate amount of parking spots to dwelling units.
Fifteen percent of the market rate units in the project would be set aside as affordable housing for moderate and middle-income households, consistent with the City’s affordable-housing policy. The PNF does not list a price range for the units.
The Goddard House nursing home controversially ceased operations on Sept. 8, 2012, and has remained vacant since. The building was constructed in 1927 and housed about 100 seniors. Goddard House still operates a nursing home in Brookline.
The project is anticipated to start construction in summer 2016.
For more information about the project or to make a comment, visit bit.ly/1l01M2J.